


Just Take a Chance

by Chick_With_Horns



Series: Izzy or Isn't She? [2]
Category: U2 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cute Romantic Beginnings, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Zoo TV Tour (U2)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-07-07
Packaged: 2020-06-24 06:44:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19718320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chick_With_Horns/pseuds/Chick_With_Horns
Summary: Set during U2's Zoo TV tour. Two different people find an answer to the burning question, ‘Do they just like me, or do they LIKE like me?’ One of them is Adam. One of them is not.





	Just Take a Chance

**Author's Note:**

> Set during Zoo TV. This is the next installment in the adventures of my original characters, Isabel (Izzy) and Emma. The red scarf and the ‘night on the beach in Miami’ are both from my first story, Ready For What’s Next. 
> 
> For anyone who’s interested, my faceclaims for Izzy and Emma are posted here:  
> (Apologies, I can't figure out how to add a link.)  
> https://hornedchick.tumblr.com/post/186125001487/so-ive-just-posted-a-new-story-on-ao3-another
> 
> Red scarf inexpertly added by me.
> 
> Once again, many many thanks to my awesome friend iblamethisonSherlock for help, encouragement and advice. You’re the best, I would never have finished this without you!

**Excerpt from Isabel Palmer’s tour diary - Philadelphia, 10 March 1992**

So, here we are in Philly. I just have to write something about what a huge thrill it is to drive up to the venue and see the band’s name plastered all over, and the semi trucks lined up. It’s anticipation of something momentous. But instead of joining the hopeful little crowd that’s been standing around all night hoping to see somebody, you head for the side entrance and pull out your crew badge, because _you’re helping make this thing happen._ _You’re not an observer, you’re helping the music come to life. You actually have a part in creating the magic._ There are just no words to describe that feeling. That’s the best part of this for me… watching something amazing come to life.

_\- - - - - -_

Another stop, another afternoon of careful planning and occasional chaos, preparing for another show… and Emma was getting fed up. Not with the band or the tour, but with Izzy, her co-worker, her best friend. _The lovable idiot._ Oh, she was good at her job, that wasn’t the problem… the problem (according to Emma) was that Izzy was completely ignoring a romantic opportunity.

They were in the midst of the usual wardrobe department pre-show preparation. It was getting to be a familiar routine by now: help set up the dressing rooms, unpack the wardrobe cases, sort everybody’s things onto separate racks. Now they were pulling out specific items for each band member: stage outfits for the first half of the show, and other clothes for after intermission, to be moved to the small quick-change room (‘Room Two’ for short) within Underworld, the vast area under the stage where everything technical happened.

And where other things didn’t happen but should, in Emma’s opinion. More specifically, things involving her best friend and a certain band member. Earlier that afternoon, as the girls were finishing setting up Room Two, Adam Clayton had been hanging around in Underworld after sound check. A perfect opportunity, she’d thought.

“I’m just saying, you could have said something to him then,” Emma said. She consulted the handwritten list on the table and pulled out a couple of shirts. “I mean, I’ve watched you watching him ever since the tour started, and he was right there.”

Izzy made an annoyed noise. “I told you already. He was busy then, it was during sound check.”

“He wasn’t busy, they’d just finished. You’re just avoiding the situation. So what’s the problem? Are you going to talk to him, or what?”

“There’s no problem. We talk all the time,” Izzy answered.

Emma gave an exasperated sigh. “All of us making small talk while the guys get ready for the show is not what I meant, and you know it. When are _you_ … going to talk to _him_ … alone?” With each pause, she poked Izzy’s arm for emphasis.

Izzy turned away and sighed, busying herself with adjusting and retying the red scarf holding her dark hair back. “I don’t know. I’ll get to it. The whole idea just… makes me nervous.”

“Why should it? He’s a nice guy. You’ve never had trouble talking to guys before.” Emma scowled at her friend’s stubbornness.

“Okay, yeah, but come on, he’s not just any guy, he’s famous.”

“Yeah? And so?” Emma asked.

“Probably has women hanging around all the time, giving him their numbers or whatever. How is somebody like me gonna get his attention?” Izzy grimaced. “It’s just a totally different world from mine.”

“You worry too much. You’re already around him all the time, just take a chance. You’re obviously attracted to him. And it’d be fun, right? I mean, Iz, look at him. Seriously. He’s pretty hot.”

“Well, yeah...” Izzy grinned a little. “But what if he’s not interested? It’d make the rest of the tour really awkward.”

“Oh, please,” Emma huffed. “He has his eye on you too, if you weren’t aware.”

“Really? Come on, no he doesn’t,” Izzy protested. Nevertheless, her stomach suddenly felt pleasantly jumpy at the idea.

Emma shrugged. “Look, all I know is, whenever you’re around him, he keeps looking at you.” She reached into a case and pulled out a dark flower print suit and held it out. “Speaking of, here. He wants this for tonight.”

Izzy touched the velvety fabric and smiled a little, remembering past shows. “Good choice. He looks fantastic in this.”

“He does. You should tell him.”

“I’m gonna smack you with a hanger if you don’t give it a rest.” She paused, then sighed. “Okay, fine, I’ll think about it.”

Emma considered this a positive sign. “Yeah, well. If you don’t do it pretty damn soon, I’m gonna lock you in one of these.” She thumped one of the wardrobe cases with her fist.

“Just be sure there are gaps so I can breathe.” Izzy stuck out her tongue and took the suit, adding “Brat,” with a smile as she headed for the dressing rooms.

“I love you too,” Emma called after her, grinning.

\- - - - - -

Izzy’s mind was buzzing as she hurried past random crew members and stacks of equipment. What if Emma was right, and Adam really was interested? She’d been too busy learning the work routine to really stop and consider the possibility, but… wow. The idea left her excited and more than a little nervous. _What if, what if,_ kept going through her mind.

Adam wasn’t in his dressing room, which was somewhat of a relief; she needed more time to think about this. _What do I say to him?_ She thought. _How do I find out how he feels?_ The question would have to wait… no time for it now. There was work to be done.

Izzy looked around the room: functional cement concealed with curtains and rugs, a somewhat cluttered dressing table and mirror, a couch, Adam’s post-show selection of clothes hanging up neatly. She glanced at herself in the mirror for a moment, grimacing as she noticed she’d retied her scarf rather badly. Another thing to worry about later.

She pushed the other clothes a little farther down on the rack and hung the flowered suit on the end, where Adam would see it right away. As she moved around, her foot bumped something… shoes. She’d accidentally kicked a pair of shoes, and one had gone under the rack. Sighing with annoyance at her own clumsiness, she knelt and crawled far enough under it to retrieve the shoe, ducking to try to avoid the garments hanging in her face and brushing against her head. Standing again, she took a final look around to make sure everything was ready, then headed back to the wardrobe room.

_\- - - - - -_

Some time later, Adam returned to his dressing room, noted that his stage outfit was ready… and then spotted a piece of red cloth on the floor, almost under the clothes rack. He picked it up, looked it over and smiled, remembering a dark-haired girl and a night on the beach in Miami.

_\- - - - - -_

It was almost time. The clothes racks were ready in Room Two, the arena was humming with the combined noise of prerecorded music and thousands of excited voices, and the backstage area was alive with a special kind of precisely planned and controlled, slightly chaotic energy that only existed right before a show. Emma and Izzy were going over their checklist after conferring with Janice, the wardrobe supervisor.

“Room Two is ready for intermission… the guys should be going on any minute… okay then. All ready. Good job, go team!” Emma grinned and raised her hand for a high five, which Izzy enthusiastically returned.

“It’s finally getting easier,” Izzy said. “Everything seemed so crazy at first, there was so much to remember, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to handle it, but now-- I mean, it’s just another routine.”

“I knew you’d be fine,” Emma replied. “You’ve done theater work, you can do this.”

“Hey, thanks. And wow, I thought that was tiring...” Izzy stretched and ran a hand through her hair, then looked suddenly panicked. “Oh shit, my scarf!”

“What? Is it gone?” Emma frowned.

“Yeah.” Izzy gave the room a frantic once over, then stepped out into the main area, disappearing in the direction of the dressing rooms. She returned a few minutes later. “I don’t see it anywhere. Shit, I can’t lose that thing...”

“Don’t worry, we’ll find it. There’s not that many places it could be.” Emma patted her friend’s shoulder. “We’ll have to look around more after the show starts, no time now.”

“Yeah, okay… after they go on I can go back and check the dressing rooms.”

The hallway outside the wardrobe room was getting steadily busier. Janice passed by, giving them a quick thumbs-up before rushing off again. Minutes later, a shout started coming from somewhere in the main area, getting closer and closer as it was repeated by more voices. “Showtime! Five minutes!”

The girls stood in the doorway, watching the little parade of band members and instrument techs coming closer. Bono was in full Fly mode, complete with dark glasses and swagger. Edge and Larry were talking and laughing. There was Adam in his flower print suit… and suddenly Izzy gasped. Sticking out of Adam’s jacket pocket was a piece of red cloth.

“Hey...” she started.

Adam looked at her as he passed, glanced down at his jacket briefly, and grinned.

“And you thought he wasn’t interested,” Emma said, smirking.

“He has my scarf.” Izzy frowned. “He just took it and went onstage with it.”

“Yes, he did. And when he brings it back, you can finally talk to him.” Emma fixed Izzy with a hard, don’t-argue-with-me-on-this stare. “Right?”

“Yeah, I suppose...” Izzy looked somewhat doubtful. “I mean, assuming he doesn’t just hand it over on his way back to get changed.”

“He won’t.”

“How do you know?”

Emma turned to her friend. “Iz, how are you so clueless? The whole point of bringing it back to you after the show would be so he can have time to talk to you. Honestly...” She shook her head, her voice trailing off into noises of frustration.

“You think?”

“YES.”

Izzy didn’t reply, but lapsed into thoughtful silence as the two straightened up the room.

_\- - - - - -_

The show was a huge success. The crowd was completely caught up in the music, cheering and dancing and singing along, until the energy flowing between them and the band was almost a physical thing. Emma and Izzy were busy enough that they didn’t have time to continue their conversation about Adam. Once everything was winding down, though, with the departing crowd flowing out of the arena in slow waves of overjoyed, noisy energy and exhaustion, Emma decided she was going to make sure Izzy didn’t forget what they’d talked about.

The band came backstage tired and sweaty, surrounded by a little flurry of applause and cheering. Bono was talking and joking, still high on the adrenaline rush of the performance. The others all lingered in the main area, grabbing drinks and discussing the show, but Adam headed for the wardrobe room.

Emma saw him approaching and banged on one of the wardrobe cases as a reminder. Izzy looked up, startled.

“What’s up?”

Emma gave her a hard look, banged on the case again, and nodded at the doorway. The message was clear: _Here he comes. Do it._

Izzy glared back, silently mouthing, _Don’t rush me!_ She spotted Adam standing in the doorway and smiled. “Hey, hi… great show!”

“Amazing as always,” Emma added. She was suddenly very busy at the far end of the room.

“Thanks, ladies,” Adam said with a grin. “And we appreciate your help.” He walked over to Izzy, pulled a length of red cloth out of a pocket, and held it out to her. “Did you lose this?”

“I did, thank you,” she said, and tied it loosely around her neck. After a frantic moment in which her brain screamed, _say something clever_ , she smiled and added, “Did it enjoy being onstage?”

Adam’s grin widened. “Yes, it did, very much.” He shifted in place, leaning just a bit closer. He smelled like sweat and cigarette smoke and just a hint of cologne. It was an oddly arousing combination.

_It’s just a simple conversation_ , Izzy told herself. _Don’t say anything stupid._ “I’ll have to keep an eye on it. No telling what it’ll want to do next.” _Ugh,_ she thought, _that was kind of stupid._ But Adam hadn’t seemed to notice.

“Some of us are going out for a few drinks after we’re done here. Perhaps it would enjoy that too.” He nodded in Emma’s direction. “You should both come. There’ll be drunken revelry.”

Izzy suddenly felt as if she had swallowed a few dozen butterflies. _OH my god,_ she thought, _this is amazing,_ _he wants me to go out somewhere with him!_ She laughed to cover her nervousness. “Okay, sure! Revelry sounds good.”

“Great, see you there.” Adam gave her a little wave and headed off to the dressing rooms.

As soon as he was gone, Emma came back over. “That went great! See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

“Says you. I was really nervous.”

“Well, you sounded fine. Are you gonna wear your scarf like that?”

“I don’t know, I guess...”

“Because, here.” Emma unbuttoned an extra button of Izzy’s shirt, then adjusted the ends of the scarf. “Never hurts to show a little extra skin.”

Izzy rolled her eyes and grinned. “Thanks.”

_\- - - - - -_

The bar was dimly lit, with strings of Christmas lights and a random collection of kitschy décor scattered here and there. Rock music blended with loud voices and bursts of laughter. A large group of crew members occupied several tables, most of them cluttered with baskets of french fries and onion rings and half-empty bottles. Bono was deep in animated conversation at one table; Adam was sitting at another and grinned and waved, beckoning them over.

The girls were greeted with more waves and a couple of drunken cheers. Bono looked over, still talking, and smiled, raising his bottle in greeting. Chairs were moved and people shuffled themselves around, several speaking at once. “Hey, make room. Grab a couple more chairs. Glad you made it!” They found spots at a table and more bottles of beer were produced.

They were quickly pulled into the conversations flowing from table to table: jokes, comments on the music, speculations about the next tour stop, even a debate about which local restaurant made the best cheesesteak. After the hard work and strict routine of the show, everyone was glad to have a chance to relax and goof off a little.

Emma was especially glad to have Izzy and Adam in a place where a few drinks and a casual atmosphere would encourage them to talk to each other. She had noticed halfway through her first beer that the two were still just stealing glances at each other, and she was getting frustrated with her friend’s hesitation. This was the perfect chance to encourage Izzy to move a little faster.

Fortunately, Izzy wasn’t completely oblivious. After a few beers, she pulled Emma aside for a private conversation. By that time, the girls were both feeling less inhibited and more giggly. “Hey,” Izzy half-whispered, “I just caught him lookin’ at me, and he smiled. You know, in that way he does.” She emphasized ‘way’ as if it were a special move.

“So do something!” Emma whispered back.

“I did! I mean, I smiled back.” She shrugged a little and took another drink.

“That’s not enough. Do something else. Do something flirty.”

“Why don’t I just buy him a beer or something?”

“Pfft, that’s boring, anybody can do that,” Emma scoffed. “You need to do something that’ll make him remember you and think about you later.”

“Like what, drop my pants?” Izzy instantly dissolved into slightly drunken giggles.

Emma couldn’t help but join in. “You goof,” she said at last, when she could speak again. “He’d remember you, all right.” More giggles.

“Okay. Okay, I have an idea.” Izzy nodded at Adam, who was leaning over a table talking to Bono. She went to the bar and got two fresh bottles of beer, then walked to the table where the guys were still absorbed in conversation. She paused a moment to get up her courage, then stepped quietly behind Adam and touched one cold bottle to the back of his neck.

He gave a satisfying yelp and spun around, then grinned when he saw Izzy holding the bottle.

“Oops,” she said, and smiled.

“Are you sure that was accidental?” Adam asked, his voice close to laughter.

Izzy handed him one bottle, her eyes wide with mock innocence. “Maybe you’d better take one of these, so I’ll be less tempted to do it again.”

He took the beer. “Good idea. And come sit by me so I’ll know what you’re up to.” His expression suggested that he already knew what she was up to, and was completely in favor of it.

Emma, watching the two go back to Adam’s table, had just one thought: _My work here is done._

  
  
  
  



End file.
